Making Your Family Home a Healthier Place

A family home is where all the magic happens. It’s our little corner, a place where we get to feel loved and cherished, where our favorite people in the world reside and can always welcome us with open arms. But for a house to really feel like a home, we need it to be safe and protected. There’s something about stepping inside a clean, warm, and friendly home that immediately makes us feel like we’re in the right place, and every parent understands just how important this is for a child. If you want your house to be an oasis of peace and comfort, then you have to make sure you’re making all the right choices in the way you maintain it. Looking for some tips on how to do that? Then read on.

Keep the home mould-free

Mould is a health hazard, and it can be a huge problem for families who live in a humid climate or have an unchecked source of moisture. Wet air is the perfect breeding ground for pests and mould, and to keep the damp away, you should make sure to always fix all the water leaks around the house, check the gutters and drains, keep your windows and doors firmly sealed, and have exhaust fans around the kitchens and bathrooms. Another great solution is to get a good air purifier for mould that has a quality HEPA filter and can easily be installed in your home. It can help remove the spores from the air and keep it clean and fresh, and it’s particularly good for people who have allergies or sensitive respiratory systems.

Switch out your toothbrushes and sponges

A lot of households hold onto their sponges and toothbrushes for far too long, and these are some of the easiest places for bacteria to reach. You genuinely don’t need an extremely high-quality, expensive toothbrushes at all, you just need to change them frequently – every 2-3 months is a usually a good idea. Once the bristles start bending, you’re not cleaning nearly as effectively, so toss it out and get a new one. As for sponges, change them out every two weeks, or once a month, depending on how frequently you use them.

Clean regularly and use natural solutions

Cleaning our homes can be exhausting work, but it’s important to keep it regular if you want to get serious about your health. If you don’t want to waste your Sundays on doing every chore imaginable, then try doing a little bit each day and delegate tasks to all the other family members. You live there together, so it’s important that everyone can contribute to the community and do their own fair share of work. Another thing you can do to help keep the home safe is to use natural cleaning solutions. Not only can they be as effective as store-bought chemicals, but they are also a lot cheaper, not to mention free or harmful toxins. Simply mixing water and vinegar can take you very far, and you can also make use of baking soda and other inexpensive solutions to keep everything clean and tidy.

Reduce your carbon footprint

Turn off the lighting when exiting the room you were in, unplug electronics to reduce standby power consumption, switch to LED lightbulbs, buy energy efficient appliances and heating/cooling units, get your home some quality insulation and weatherstripping – there are many ways a family can reduce their carbon footprint. Caring for our environment is the best way to ensure the long-term safety of our homes and our children, and it’s a great way to raise a conscientious family and live in a less polluted space.

Use more organic fabrics

Your linens and the clothes you wear are very important. Organic cotton and bamboo won’t trap sweat and bacteria as much as synthetic fabrics do, and nowadays you can easily find quality bedding, towels, and clothes. This is especially important for infants because they have very sensitive skin, so find something like Bubba Blue swaddles and play mats to keep your baby safe. Breathable, airy garments and linens made out of organic fabrics are just as soft as old-fashioned ones, so you really won’t be sacrificing comfort.
Introduce good hygiene habits

As it turns out, most adults have pretty bad hygiene habits, and this can really increase the chance of contracting diseases. Germs roam more freely if we don’t wash our hands regularly, and while keeping your home sterile is both impossible and actively harmful for our immune system, some basic hygiene is still very much necessary. Teach your children to wash their hands before every meal and after they’ve gone to the bathroom, and make sure they use warm water and lather their hands for about 20 seconds each time.

Ventilate your home

Fresh outdoor air is important for our health, so opening your windows in the morning and in the evening just to get the air to circulate through the room is a good idea. Of course, you should also have the filters in your cooling units and your exhaust fans cleaned regularly.
Work on keeping your home clean as a family by introducing healthy habits and raising awareness about harmful toxins and the importance of being environmentally conscious. Make it a safe place and you’ll always make everyone feel welcome.

Zara Lewis is a regular contributor at ripped.me, a traveller and a mother to two. Originally from Chicago, she found her place in the sun in Perth, Australia. Passionate about creating a better world for the generations to come, she enjoys sharing her knowledge and experience with others.

My Blogs

This site uses affiliate links

Big Family Organised Chaos is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.co.uk and affiliated sites